Instagram Introduces ‘Rings’ Awards to Celebrate Creators Who Push Creative Boundaries

Highlights

• Instagram starts Rings honour for creators who push boundaries and shift culture, focusing on creative spirit rather than follower count or content type.
• The winners will receive a gold ring around their profile photo, custom profile features, and a real ring designed by Grace Wales Bonner.
• A diverse panel including Spike Lee, Marques Brownlee, Eva Chen and others will select winners across disciplines.
• The first awards will be announced on October 16.

Instagram has unveiled a brand-new creator recognition program called “Rings.” Much like YouTube’s Creator Award plaques, these Rings serve as Instagram’s way of honouring innovative creators, but with a unique twist.

Instagram Ring Awards

The Meta-owned platform announced the new creator awards in a blog post titled “Introducing Instagram Rings: A New Award Celebrating Creativity.” Introducing the new initiative, the platform writes, “We’re excited to share something new: Rings – an award from Instagram that’s all about celebrating those who aren’t afraid to take creative chances and do it their way. Those who bring people together over their creativity, and deserve recognition.”

Winners of the Rings award will receive a gold ring around their Instagram profile photo, along with the ability to customise their profile background colour and the ‘like’ button. Instagram’s Head of Fashion Partnerships, Eva Chen, described it as “something that we haven’t really ever done before.”

Caption – Winners will get a gold ring around their Instagram profile photo. (Image credit – Instagram)

“Rings isn’t about honouring a specific type of content — it honours a spirit,” Instagram said in its press release. “One theme we hear from creators all over the world is the excitement and nervousness that come with making something and putting it out into the world. It takes courage to chase an idea, quiet that inner critic, and create anyway. This award is for the creators who don’t just participate in culture — but shift it, break through whatever barrier holds them back to realize their ambitions. Because every act of creativity, big or small, can lead to something great,” the platform added.

Real, Physical Ring To Be Awarded

That is not all! In addition to the digital perks, honorees will also be given a real, physical ring as a symbol of their creative spirit.

The Rings are designed by Grace Wales Bonner, a renowned fashion designer, and while there’s no cash prize involved, recipients will get both the physical ring and a digital replica to display on their Instagram profile and Stories.

According to Instagram, Wales Bonner’s ring design is meant to “inspire even more creativity and remind us all to take creative chances.”

Instagram Ring Award Judges for 2025

Caption – Instagram Ring Award Judges for 2025. (Image credit – Instagram)

The winners were selected by a panel of judges comprising big names from different industries. This list of 2025 judges include names like Spike Lee, Marc Jacobs, Grace Wales Bonner, KAWS, Pat McGrath, Marques Brownlee (MKBHD), Yara Shahidi, Cedric Grolet, Ilona Maher, Tainy, Murad Osmann, Eva Chen, and Instagram head Adam Mosseri.

Marques Brownlee, one of the judges and a prominent tech creator with over 20 million YouTube subscribers and 5.1 million Instagram followers, told Mashable that he values “high effort content.” He added, “A really big part of my own judging criteria was high effort content and creative, and taking risks and trying to make really good stuff.”

While the Rings may draw comparisons to YouTube’s Creator plaques, Brownlee clarified that this recognition isn’t tied to follower count. Instead, it’s about peer recognition and creative impact. “I’m excited about the creators that will get recognized for this and hopefully the future of the program. Hopefully there’s a long future of Rings after this initial wave,” he said.

Unlike other award programs, the Rings do not have fixed categories. Winners will come from a variety of content areas and creative disciplines. As Eva Chen explained, “The criteria was really tough. But really, we were looking for people who take creative chances and who are always pushing the envelope and thinking about new ways to talk to their audience.”

Instagram hopes this initiative will grow into a recurring creator tradition. “We’d love to see how it’s received and how the winners enjoy the literal Instagram spotlight,” Chen said.

The winners of the first-ever Instagram Rings awards will be announced on October 16.

FAQs

Q1. What is Instagram’s ‘Rings’ award and who is it for?

Answer. The Rings award celebrates creators who take bold creative risks and influence culture. It’s not based on follower count or content type, but on creative impact and originality.

Q2. What do winners of the Rings award receive?

Answer. Honorees get a gold ring around their profile photo, custom profile features (like background colour and ‘like’ button), a physical ring designed by Grace Wales Bonner, and a digital replica for Stories.

Q3. How are Rings winners selected and who are the judges?

Answer. Winners are chosen by a diverse panel of judges from fashion, tech, art, and entertainment, including Spike Lee, Marques Brownlee, Eva Chen, and Instagram head Adam Mosseri. The focus is on high-effort, creative work that pushes boundaries.

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